Reynolds Technology
Reynolds Cycle Technology is a manufacturer of tubing for bicycle frames and other bicycle components based in Birmingham, England established in 1898. Reynolds can actually trace its origins back to 1841 when John Reynolds set up a company to manufacture nails. As the company grew, it sought other products to make. In 1897 The company patented the process for making butted tubes, which are thicker at the ends than in the middle. This allowed frame builders to create frames which were both strong and light weight. The Patent Butted Tube Co., the predecessor of the present company, was spun off from the parent company in 1898. Reynolds has over the years developed a number of steel alloys, most notably Reynolds 531, which has a high strength and therefore can be made in to lightweight tubes. Prior to the introduction of more exotic materials such as aluminium, titanium or composites, Reynolds was considered the dominant maker of high end frame materials. According to the company 27 winners of the Tour de France have won riding on Reynolds tubing. The Raleigh Bicycle Company of Nottingham, England was a big customer for Reynolds 531 tubing used in their Racing cycle range. With other high tech variations used in the professional range of cycles. Reynolds worked closely with Carpenter Speciality Alloys to develop an ultra lightweight grade of stainless steel tubing for bicycle frames. This started reaching frame builders in 2005http://www.bikebiz.com/news/19571/Bike-builders-embrace-Reynolds-953. 953 is based on a specially developed martensitic-aging stainless steel alloy that can achieve a tensile strength in excess of 2000MP (853 is around 1400MP), giving a good strength-to-weight ratio. Because of the high strength of the steel, extremely thin tube walls (down to 0.3mm) can be used, thus reducing the weight.http://www.roadcyclinguk.com/news/article/mps/uan/3315. Independent Fabrication was one of the first frame builders to prototype, show and take 953 framesets into production (as the SSR model) for road use. Cotic was one of the first companies to prototype and show a mountain frameset (based on the Soda Model). A U.S. division called Reynolds Composites was created to manufacture composite components. Reynolds was for a time owned by Coyote Sports Inc., an American holding company; when this company entered Chapter 11, a management buy-out resulted in the company returning to its base in the UK. Tubing Types Steel *'453' - Manganese/Titanium alloy. Reynolds produced only the 3 main tubes in this alloy and they were single butted. *'501' - Needs information *'525' - Cold worked Chromoly. UTS: 700-900 MPa, density 7.78gm/cc *'531' - Managanese/Chromoly. UTS: 48 - 58 Tsi, 100 - 130 Ksi, 700 - 900 MPa **'531SC' - Limited edition tubeset used by Trek in 1984 **'531C' - Competition Racing tubeset **'531ST' - Special Touring tubesethttp://www.bretonbikes.com/reynolds.htm **'531OS' - Oversize tubeset *'631' - Seamless air-hardening heat-treated. UTS: 800-900 MPa, density 7.78 gm/cc **'631OS' - Oversize tubeset *'653' - Needs information **'653 Record' - Needs information *'725' - Heat-Treated Chromoly. UTS: 1080-1280 Mpa, density 7.78gm/cc **'725OS' - Oversize tubeset *'731' - Needs information **'731OS' - Oversize tubeset *'753' - Heat-Treated Manganese/Chromoly. UTS: 1080 - 1280 MPa, 70 - 83 Tsi, 157 - 186 Ksi **'753OS' - Oversize tubeset *'853' - Seamless air-hardening heat-treated. UTS: 1250-1400 MPa, density 7.78 gm/cc **'853OS' - Oversize tubeset *'953' - Stainless Steel. UTS: 1750-2050 MPa, density 7.8 gm/cc Notes: #531, 653 and 753 series no longer produced by Reynolds, due to their inability to be TIG welded. Aluminium *'7005' - Al Zn alloy. UTS: 400 MPa, density 2.78 gm/cc *'6061' - Al Si Mg alloy. UTS: 325 MPa , density 2.70 gm/cc *'X-100' - Al Li Alloy. UTS : 550-600 MPa, density 2.65 gm/cc Titanium *'6Al-4V' - Seamless ELI Grade UTS: 900-1150 MPa, density 4.42 gm/cc *'3Al-2.5V' - Seamless. UTS: 810-960 MPa, density 4.48 gm/cc Magnesium *'MZM Electron' - Magnesium Alloy. UTS: ~300+ MPa, density ~1.80 gm/cc References See also * Columbus tubing External links *Reynolds website *Reynolds Composites Category:Cycling in the United Kingdom Category:Cycle manufacturers Category:Manufacturing companies of the United Kingdom Category:Companies based in Birmingham, England